Wow – how did it get to be mid-July?! Indeed, we’re over halfway through the year – and what a year it’s been.

Although summer can be a busy time filled with vacations and camps, it also can be a time for reflection. And as I reflect on what the Office has accomplished this year, I couldn’t be prouder.

First, we’ve produced and released the first-ever Office of Nutrition Research (ONR) Strategic Plan. This plan outlines our goals, objectives, and strategic priorities for the next five fiscal years. It also reinforces ONR’s unique role at NIH and within the federal government: to inspire research to generate the fundamental knowledge and evidence base needed to address and inform high-priority questions about the role of diet and nutrition to promote health and to prevent, reduce, and manage chronic disease. We are the linchpin for nutrition research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and beyond.

Second, we’ve partnered with our U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) colleagues to start a new, joint innovative research initiative that will serve as a key element in fulfilling U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s commitment to Make America Healthy Again. Under the new Nutrition Regulatory Science Program, the FDA and NIH will implement and accelerate a comprehensive nutrition research agenda that will provide critical information to inform effective food and nutrition policy actions to help make Americans’ food and diets healthier. The initiative will aim to answer questions such as: will implement and accelerate a comprehensive nutrition research agenda that will provide critical information to inform effective food and nutrition policy actions to help make Americans’ food and diets healthier. The initiative will aim to answer questions such as:

• How and why can ultra-processed foods harm people’s health?
• How might certain food additives affect metabolic health and possibly contribute to chronic disease?
• What is the role of maternal and infant dietary exposures on health outcomes across the lifespan, including autoimmune diseases?

Answering these questions and many others will enable effective policy development and help promote the transparency Americans deserve when if comes to the foods they are eating and how those foods impact their health.

Third, the Nutrition for Precision Health, powered by the All of Us Research Program (NPH) was recently highlighted during a Research!America Alliance discussion focused on speeding solutions for chronic conditions. As I’ve mentioned in a previous blog, NPH is generating data and other information to develop algorithms that predict personal responses to foods and dietary patterns. If we can predict, we can tailor guidance to optimize health. Nutrition is personal, and the findings from NPH will help inform each individual which foods and dietary patterns are best for them. 

Fourth, we are in the process of launching a project focused on malnutrition. The program’s overarching goal is to better understand the nutritional ecology of patients across the lifespan and healthcare continuum. By adopting an ecological approach to malnutrition, the program aims to enhance the precision of clinical assessment and the development of evidence-informed context-specific interventions and standards of care – ensuring patients’ nutritional needs are met and their health outcomes are optimized during and after hospital discharge. Standardized use of validated tools to assess and diagnose malnutrition across the care continuum from prevention to treatment will also be foundational and essential for the success of precision nutrition and Food is Medicine programs. Stay tuned!

As I reflect, I realize there’s even more activities the Office has been working on, such as our efforts to expand the ONR Teaching Kitchen Program on the NIH campus and beyond. Yep, I’m proud of what ONR has done to date, and I’m even more excited about what we will do going forward. Nutrition is everywhere in the news these days, and ONR is poised and ready to support innovative, actionable, and solution-focused research to advance evidence-informed health programs, practices, and policies to make America healthy. Now more than ever is the time to embrace the complexities of nutrition research and work together to provide answers to food- and diet-related questions to improve the health of all Americans – at every age and stage of life. There’s an urgent call to action, and we’re ready to lead.

As always, I welcome comments, feedback, and suggested new directions for nutrition science research. If you’re on LinkedIn, feel free to share your favorite healthy snack or recipe with me – I’m always looking to expand my cookbook! Until next time, please visit the ONR website to get office-related information, and consider signing up for ONR Updates to receive monthly emails (including the Drew’s Views blog and the ONR Director’s Updates newsletter).

Nutrition Is Who We Are!
Drew Bremer
July 29, 2025